We have a gated Residential Compound consisting of around 60 buildings - 4 to 5 stories high - different models. The buildings are distributed on two main pieces of land of equal areas separated by a main road. the whole compound is owned and will be operated by one developer. 4 out of the 60 residential buildings have commercial stores on the first floor. There is also one social club building + one commercial and administrative building (area 70,000 sf and gross area is 200,000 sf) + one nursery. The total land area is 3,000,000 sf - the actual building area is 700,000 sf - The Gross building area is 2,800,000 sf.
We want to propose to the client the following approaches :
1- ND-plan with certification of the commercial and administrative building (the problem is NPDp3 - connectivity because of the gated aspect)
2- Certifying the whole lot using Campus approach and LEED BD+C Core and Shell.
3- Only certifying the club (NC) and the mall (core and shell)
Are these approaches technically applicable ? are we getting it right?
Eric Anderson
26 thumbs up
April 30, 2016 - 12:23 pm
Hello Abdelhamid, It is great to hear that you are considering so many options for how to use LEED to certify your project!
If the compound cannot comply with NPDp3, obviously & unfortunately, LEED-ND would not be an option. It is hard to say definitively without more detail, but it does sounds as though it may be difficult for this project, as you have briefly described it, to comply with that prerequisite.
Assuming the 4-5 story residential buildings are multifamily, they would be most suitable for the Multifamily Midrise adaptation of LEED for Homes (whether you are pursuing LEED v4 or the Midrise Pilot v2010). Residential buildings must be 9 stories tall or more to use LEED-NC (or CS) in LEED v4. However, according to the table on p. 10 of the LEED 2009 Rating System Selection Guidance (http://www.usgbc.org/sites/default/files/LEED-2009-Rating-System-Selecti...), multifamily midrise structures of at least 4 stories above grade would also be eligible to pursue a commercial LEED BD+C rating system in v3, such as LEED-NC 2009. In that case, the Campus (aka Master Site) Approach defined in the Campus Guidance (linked to at the top of this page) would certainly be a good way to coordinate the certifications of some or all of the buildings within the compound. In that case, you would evaluate each building individually as to whether it was more appropriate for LEED-NC or CS depending upon how much of the gross floor area within the building would be 'completed' as part of this project's scope of work. As noted in LEED Interpretation 10102, if any more than 40% of the building's total gross floor area will be not be completed as part of the project's scope of work, the project may only use LEED-CS. As long as all the fixed MEP system & equipment, and all essential floor, wall, & ceiling finishes are installed, the space should be considered 'complete' for BD+C rating system selection purposes. Remember, both NC & CS projects can share a single Master Site. Please also note that residential buildings under 9 stories tall cannot use LEED-NC or CS in LEED v4, and the deadline for LEED v3/2009 project registrations is October 31 of this year.
Bearing in mind the guidance above re:deciding between LEED-NC and CS, the third approach you mentioned also sounds feasible with or without the use of the Campus Approach.
I hope the information provided above is helpful, but feel free to use the Contact link on the USGBC or GBCI websites for additional feedback, and best of luck with your project!